Anthony Forcione, adjunct lecturer in Finance, was recently named vice president and portfolio manager for Rockland Trust Bank’s Investment Management group. In this new role, Forcione is responsible for integrating an investment strategy reflective of each client’s objectives, financial goals and risk tolerance, including custom asset allocation, long-term goal planning and securities research. 

Three Bentley students collaborated with the American Psychosocial Oncology Society (APOS), the only multidisciplinary organization in the United States dedicated to researching and treating the psychosocial aspects of cancer, on the culminating project for their Liberal Studies Major in Health and Industry. Advised by Helen Meldrum, associate professor of Natural and Applied Sciences, Alisha Gagnon ’21, Victoria Labita ’21 and Grace Peterson ’21 conducted research to help APOS expand their outreach and diversify their membership base. According to APOS member Jeffrey Kendall, PsyD, director of Oncology Support Services MHealth Fairview Oncology Service Line Minneapolis, “The information the students provided is outstanding and incredibly valuable as we move to make our organization the best it can be.”  

In her new book, A Wrongful Eye, Annette Choy ’21 takes a closer look at wrongful convictions in the U.S. justice system. Choy, who graduated this spring with degrees in Computer Information Systems (major) and Law (minor), was inspired to learn more about racial profiling in the court system after taking a business law course during her first semester at Bentley. Her book explores issues of unconscious bias, misconduct in the American criminal justice system, and flawed investigative and forensic techniques. A portion of the proceeds from A Wrongful Eye will support the Innocence Project.  

Five members of the Bentley Consulting Group — Eddie Fu ’24, Brian Lau ’22, Brenna Masterson ’24, Sandhya Sangappa ’24, and Michael Watkins ’22, competed in the 4th annual Case for a Cause Competition sponsored by Roland Berger, a leading global strategy consulting firm. Teams from 24 universities participated in the charity event, which benefits Make-A-Wish® Massachusetts and Rhode Island. The Bentley team was one of five to advance to the final round of the competition, ultimately sharing the title of first runner-up with the MIT team. 

Sandeep Purao, professor of Information and Process Management, was nominated to the Engineering and Computer Science Accreditation Council (ECSAC) for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The council, which is responsible for issuing accreditation decisions for specialized academic programs, is comprised of academic leaders from Saudi Arabia and invited international experts, and reports to the national Education and Training Evaluation Commission. Both the council and commission are working to transform higher education institutions in Saudi Arabia, in accordance with the kingdom’s Vision 2030 plan. 

Cynthia Clark, Management professor and director of the university’s Harold S. Geneen Institute of Corporate Governance, recently published Giving Voice to Values in the Boardroom. In it, she examines critical issues in the realm of corporate governance — including strategic planning and monitoring, director independence, privacy and cyber risk, executive compensation and CEO succession planning — and offers practical strategies for board members to remain true to their personal values through ethical decision-making.  

This was the second book Clark published in 2020: The first, Business and Society: Ethical, Legal, and Digital Environments, explores the opportunities and challenges resulting from an increasingly interconnected global economy. Topics include social media and citizen movements, big data and hacking, and privacy in the digital age. 

The Association of Fraternity/Sorority Advisers (AFA) recognized Bentley University with its 2020 Outstanding Change Initiative Award. Established in 1996, the national honor is presented to institutions of higher education or member organizations that have made tremendous progress and improvement in their fraternity/sorority communities.  

Bentley was recognized for its Fraternity and Sorority Life (FSL) Strategic Plan, which was established jointly by the FSL Presidents Council and the Office of Student Programs & Engagement. The plan outlines FSL’s commitment to “enhance the student experience and prepare future business leaders for success” by focusing efforts on three key areas: academic success and career preparation; community relations; and social responsibility. 

Mathematical Sciences professor Nathan Carter was honored with the 2020 Beckenbach Book Prize. Established by the Mathematical Association of America (MAA) in 1986, the award is presented periodically to a “distinguished, innovative book” published by the MAA within the previous five years. 

Carter’s book, Introduction to the Mathematics of Computer Graphics (2016), provides an in-depth look at the mathematical principles involved in graphic design. In its citation, the MAA praises it as “a how-to book for creating stunning, informative, and insightful imagery.”  

Carter also received the Beckenbach Book Prize in 2012, for his book Visual Group Theory. 

Several Bentley alumni were recognized for their undergraduate research by being named as co-authors in recent journal publications: 

• Usama Salim ’16 and Sunyi Zhang MSBA ’19 for “Late-Stage Product Development and Approvals by Biotechnology Companies after Initial Public Offering 1997-2016,” which appeared in Clinical Therapeutics 
• Skyler de Boer ’18, Jeremy Holden ’20 and Liam Fitzgerald ’20 for “Comparing Long-Term Value Creation after Biotech and Non-biotech IPOs, 1997-2016,” which appeared in PLOS ONE 
• Prateet Shah ’20 for “Licenses of Biotechnologies Provide Lower Economic Returns to Academic Institutions than Biopharmaceutical Companies,” forthcoming 

All three papers involved research undertaken with the support of Bentley’s Center for the Integration of Science and Industry. According to Center director Fred Ledley, “Authorship in a scientific journal is not simply an acknowledgement, it is recognition that the authors made critically important contributions to the design, analysis or interpretation of the data. For these students to achieve professional-level recognition for their efforts, especially as undergraduates, is truly exceptional.”